We started this day by visiting the NELHA facility. NEHLA stands for the Natural Energy Laboratory Hawaii Authority. This group does community service and nonprofit events, but primarily focuses on OTEC (Ocean Thermal Energy Conservation). We learned that OTEC leaves no carbon footprint and is the largest source of seawater energy production in the world.
After that we visited the Monk Seal hospital. The hospital is a non profit organization that helps injured seals and raises awareness about their status as an endangered species. The hospital volunteer explained to us statistics of Monk Seals regarding their population and current habitat (Northern Hawaii).
After our trip to the hospital we began our ascent to the near-summit of Mauna Kea, the largest mountain in the world. Our trip to the summit was a 4 hour bus ride/guided tour. Our tour guide explained to us some of the Hawaiian legends that surround the mountain. One of which told the story of an endless battle between the goddess of water (which manifested in a lake located near the top of the mountain) and the goddess of fire (which manifested in the active volcanoes on the islands). As we were driving, we noticed how part of the terrain was transformed by lava. For more information about Hawaiian mythology, go to https://www.to-hawaii.com/hawaiian-myths-and-legends.php . 
By exploring the mountain, we discovered just how much a volcano can change a landscape. We did not go to the summit of the mountain, because it is considered to be sacred grounds to native Hawaiians. Once we reached our stopping point, our tour guide brought out his telescope and pointed out various stars for us to look at. Some of these included: Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, the North Star, a close up image of the moon, etc. After we finished stargazing we drove back home.
Despite being exhausted, I couldn’t sleep because I was incredibly excited for the scuba dives we were going to do the next day.
